Food products that need to be transported from one destination to another can be packaged in a carton or box. In the retail market, the number of food product items that are packaged in a particular box need to be relatively exact such that no more or no less than a given quantity of the product is included in the box. This is especially important in the area of packaging food products. In order to package a given quantity of a food product, the boxes can be packaged by hand and counted by the person packing the box.
The desire to automate the packaging process developed, and such a task was carried out by machines. One way this was done was by transporting the food product along a conveyor line at the end of which was located a box or shipping carton to catch the food product therein as it fell off the end of the conveyor line. This packing method, however, could result in a haphazard arrangement of the food product in the carton, such that when the carton was packed with the food product, the food product was not necessarily aligned and precise counting of the food product was not achieved. An example of this method is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,877,199 for packaging frankfurters.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,445,986 describes filling containers automatically by feeding the product first into an intermediate area having sloping walls, so that the products slide into the container down the walls when the base of the intermediate area is opened. The products are cigars that are filled into containers having small cross-sectional areas. Where a heavier and larger product is to be filled, such as a frankfurter, a larger container would be needed and thus the filling would not be as orderly.
Another automated process involves collecting food products in a group before dropping into a box. One such process is disclosed in U.S. Patent Publication 2004/0168580. This process transports and loads frankfurters by arranging them in single layer groups within a staging area first, then dropping the frankfurters into an accumulation and storage area before finally dropping the accumulated frankfurters into a collection receptacle. The frankfurters are collected on a pair of retractable support rods in both the staging area and the accumulation and storage area, where the rods displace in a sidewardly direction to release or drop the frankfurters to the level below. However, upon dropping the frankfurters from the accumulation and storage area into the collection receptacle, tucking flaps are used to maintain the alignment of the frankfurters after they are dropped. Therefore, although the frankfurters are aligned before they are dropped, this alignment is not necessarily maintained after dropping from the accumulation and storage area and thus additional mechanical adjustment is still required to ensure proper alignment. Furthermore, the pair of retractable rods only support the frankfurters at two points along the body of the frankfurter. Thus, the weight of the frankfurter upon frankfurter, as in the accumulation and storage area, or the weight of the frankfurter alone upon the rod, as in the staging area, can put pressure upon the frankfurter at the contact point with the rods that can cause it to become deformed at that point and/or can cause the frankfurter to curl around the rods.
Regardless of which of the above loading methods are employed, the food product may end up being dropped from a high height upon being loaded into the box, thus resulting in a box containing food products that are not all arranged in the same direction due to the large drop upon falling. If the drop height is too high, the product could even become damaged upon being loaded into the box. When the packaged food product does not have a pleasing and orderly presentation within the box this can convey an undesirable impression. Additionally, the food product may shift during transportation if not aligned properly and thus the food product may become damaged as a result of this movement.